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29 March 2024

Mena Golf Tour returns after summer break with Dubai Creek Open

Ahmed Al Musharrekh of UAE. (SUPPLIED)

Published
By Staff

The Mena Golf Tour swings back into action after a summer break with a quality field, represented by players from 32 different countries, raring to have a go at the remaining eight events, beginning with the Dubai Creek Open next week.

The demanding golfing odyssey, covering the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Oman, will see players produce their own storybook finishes before the field is whittled down to top 40 professionals and 15 leading amateurs from their respective Orders of Merit for the season-ending Tour Championship to be held at Al Ain Equestrian, Shooting and Golf Club.

Boasting an expanded schedule, the 2013 edition of the tour which comprises 10 events, teed off earlier this year in March with Morocco playing host to the first two events - Royal Golf Dar Es Salam Open in Rabat and Royal Golf D’Anfa Open in Mohammedia, near Casablanca.

The home players wasted no time in grabbing the opportunity and made a strong statement for Arab golf with Ahmed Marjan winning the amateurs division in both the events while Younes El Hassani led the challenge in the professional category, posting a creditable second-place finish in Rabat. Amine Joudar and Abdelhak Sabi further added to home exploits with top-10 finishes in Mohammedia.

They will be hoping to carry momentum into the second leg of the tour when they join a strong field spearheaded by European Tour stars – Stephen Dodd of Wales and Zane Scotland of England, the winners of the first two tournaments in Morocco.

Anticipation is already building ahead of the Dubai Creek Open, starting on September 23, with 115 players, including 30 amateurs, signed up for what promises to be an exciting affair.

The event has also attracted the likes of Max William, the winner of the 2012 Mena Tour Order of Merit winner (amateurs), Asian Tour veterans Ross Bain (Scotland) and Yasin Ali (England), Lindsay Renolds of Canada, former Mena Tour champion Jake Shepherd and Germany’s Aaron Leitmannstetter among others who all fancy their chances of spinning out some surprise results.

While the traditional golf powerhouses like the UK, the USA and Australia are well represented in the early list of entries, players from as far afield as Mexico, Zambia, Rwanda and Canada have also signed up, giving the tour truly a global look.

Morocco and Bahrain top entries from the region with each fielding seven players, while Ahmed Al Musharrekh will lead the UAE challenge, hoping a good showing on the tour will put his professional career on track.

Encouraged by the overwhelming response to the Dubai Creek Open, which like last year, is oversubscribed, the organisers have adopted a flexible approach, expanding the starting field to 120 to accommodate the maximum possible players instead of the originally planned 100.

Having played hosts to numerous tournaments, including the Omega Dubai Desert Classic on two occasions, the  Dubai Creek is no stranger to international golf, but it will be the second time they will be welcoming Mena Golf Tour players in a move which could become a tradition.

Mustafa Al Hashimi, Manager of Dubai Creek, said his greenkeeping staff have been preparing its par-71 championship course for the big week since the last few months to ensure the players face a truly pristine, but challenging golf course.

"We look forward to welcoming players from different nationalities on the Mena Golf Tour. The field is pretty strong and I am sure the script will have many exciting twists and turns. It will be interesting to see if the course record – a 63 jointly held by Lee Westwood and Darren Clarke – comes under threat.

"For that to happen, the players would need to summon their A-game when it comes to the approach shots and putting since the greens are so perfect and the ball rolls so nicely," he said, adding: "You never know what will happen in golf, but the course will provide a fair all-round test for the players."

Mohamed Juma Buamaim, chairman of the Mena Golf Tour, said: “Ours is basically a self-funded tour and we are grateful to the management and staff of each participating club for their enthusiastic support to the tour.

"We appreciate all the hard work they have put in preparing the courses which are in great condition and we can expect some exciting golf ahead.

"We have received good number entries for each event which is not only a great advertisement for the clubs, but also for the tour as a whole. The Mena Tour has attributes to become even stronger in years to come if we continue to have the backing of premier clubs in the region.”

An initiative by the Shaikh Maktoum Golf Foundation, the tour is affiliated to R&A and the Arab Golf Federation. The 10-stop tour, which is backed by Omega and Mercedes-Benz, boasts a combined prize fund of $525,000.